The university’s recently opened Gateway Building, which houses a biomass-fueled combined heat and power system, contains a high efficiency building envelope that controls thermal loss and solar gain. The building hosts the university’s new sustainable energy management major and renewable energy minor.

The new Richard S. Shineman Center for Science, Engineering and Innovation houses a geothermal well, LED touchscreens that monitor the building’s energy usage, foam insulation, reused flyash in concrete, low emission windows and accompanying shades, bike storage and showers, and amenities designed to encourage students to stay in the building, such as Wi-Fi, lounge areas and storage lockers.

Complementing its focus on environmental sustainability, the university’s new Green Prairie Community is a living and learning residence hall for students interested in pursuing sustainable lifestyles. The features of the new community and building include sustainability programming, community meals, onsite food gardens, wind and biomass energy systems for heating and cooling, and low-flow plumbing fixtures.

Certified by the Canada Green Building Council, the recently certified Bioenergy Plant is the first platinum facility at the university. Features include a focus on sustainable site development, water efficiency, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.

The building’s features include photovoltaic panels, a geothermal heating system, high efficiency windows, low-flow plumbing and student-made furniture made with mule-harvested wood from the college’s forest. Design and construction was guided by USGBC LEED and Living Building Challenge by the International Living Future Institute.

The Grossman House for Global Perspectives, the college’s newest student living community, was renovated with sustainable features including reflective windows, stormwater retention tank, a greywater system, demolition recycling and an indoor bicycle storage facility.

Intentionally designed to foster community among residents, features of the new 17th Avenue Hall include regional and renewable materials, a Fresh Food Company restaurant, a greywater system, a green roof and Energy Star certified equipment.

(U.S.): The first new academic facility constructed at the college since 1985, sustainable features include natural light, efficient heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, stormwater infiltration, native landscaping and a reflective roof. Approximately 43 percent of the materials were sourced regionally.

The university’s Jerry Yang and Akiko Yamazaki Environment and Energy Building incorporates efficient water and energy performance, reduced waste and promotion of alternative transportation. This is the first LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance (LEED-EBOM) certification for the university.

(U.S.): Sustainable features include preferred parking spaces for low-emitting vehicles, a stormwater management plan, geothermal system and a building dashboard for monitoring real-time energy consumption.

(Australia): The university has committed to achieving Green Building Council of Australia's rating for its Parkville Campus. All new buildings will have a minimum rating design target of 5 Star Green Star, and all major building upgrades will need to achieve 4 Star Green Star.

Receiving LEED Silver certification, the university's James B. Hunt Jr. Library features a green roof to assist with rainwater runoff, solar thermal panels and a robotic book retrieval system that enables the library to be 40 percent smaller. The Eastern 4H Center, which earned LEED Gold certification, includes insulation made from recycled denim, recycled ceramic tile, concrete exterior panels, a rain garden and bamboo flooring.

Originally constructed in 1807, the university's Fay House at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study now features ground source heat pumps to provide building heating and cooling and LED lighting. Eighty-seven percent of the existing structural walls, floors, and roof were preserved including the restoration of the wood windows and original hardwood floors.

Horizon Village features a green roof, a geothermal ground-source heat pump for heating and cooling, geothermal hot water production and a designated area for interior bicycle storage. Additionally, the limestone façade from the building formerly on site was recycled for reuse in the fireplace surround in the student lounge.

Sustainable features include a rainwater harvesting system, vegetated roof garden, sun tunnels, water-permeable pathways, demonstration photovoltaic solar array and a geothermal well system. About 40 percent of the project area is a wetland meadow/habitat restoration space.

(India): Currently being constructed on 500 acres, the university has received a five-star Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA), the national rating for environmentally friendly buildings.

The one-story, 8,500 square-foot building will eventually house equipment and systems for capturing and sequestering carbon dioxide from wine fermentation, and for filtering and recirculating water for wine, beer and food processing. Made possible by a $3 million pledge from the late Jess Jackson and his wife, Barbara Banke, of Jackson Family Wines, the winery is expected to be certified Net Zero Energy under the Living Building Challenge.

Sustainability features include reflective roofing, natural lighting, storm drainage that uses vegetation and landscaping rather than curbs and gutters, low maintenance and zero irrigation landscape design, waste reduction and recycling practices, occupancy sensors in offices and other common areas to provide lighting as needed, proximity to public transportation routes, and water use reduction through low-flow plumbing.

The university's new Student Community Center features low-flow water fixtures, hydration stations, high-efficiency lighting, a lawn-less landscape of drought-tolerant plants and permeable paving, and computers powered partly by solar energy. During construction, students from the campus Waste Reduction and Recycling program developed a job-site composting program, and builders also donated scrap materials to the university’s student-run Aggie ReUse Store.

The Material Analysis Tool, available to the public, is designed to help university staff and contractors select more environmentally friendly materials for new construction and renovation projects. The online ranking system considers manufacturer certification, durability, health impacts, rapidly renewable content, recycled content, recyclability and region of manufacture and extraction.

Ninety-six percent of the construction waste during the renovation of the Harvard Graduate School of Education library was diverted from landfill, and the renovation achieved a 36 percent reduction in annual water use.

The first LEED Gold certification for the Texas State University System was awarded for features including light occupancy sensors and a 40,000-gallon tank that collects condensation from the air-conditioning system and rain run-off to irrigate the three acres of native landscaping surrounding the complex. More than 30 percent of the building materials contain recycled content and more than 35 percent are from regional sources.

The university is celebrating its first LEED certification with Centennial Commons, a 125-person student housing development. The complex includes high-efficiency windows and furnaces, natural daylight harvesting, on-demand water heaters, low-flow plumbing and exterior LED light fixtures. The university's Residential Life, Facilities and Office of Sustainability have partnered to develop an education program for residents that includes water, gas and electricity usage reports for each apartment.

The building incorporates passive solar design, a rain garden to capture storm water from the roof, occupancy sensors to control electric lights, new insulation and windows, low-VOC and formaldehyde-free products, energy-efficient mechanicals, and recycling storage and collection centers on every floor.

The institute has opened its new Sustainability Institute Hall, a living lab that represents RIT’s commitment to the environment. The 84,000-square-foot facility was designed to exceed LEED Platinum standards and features solar panels, vertical wind turbines, and specialized research areas that include the Staples Sustainable Innovation Lab, Eco-IT test bed and a fuel cell test bed.

Among the hall’s eco-friendly features are an outdoor plaza that includes water-efficient landscaping and methods to capture stormwater, a small green roof, bicycle racks, the use of recycled building materials, and energy-efficient heating, cooling and ventilation systems.

The 400,000-square-foot Matthew Knight Arena features bike-friendly enhancements, recycled and regional building materials, and water efficiency measures that include a 50 percent reduction in water used for landscaping and a 30 percent reduction in building water use.

The Energy. Environment. Experiential. Learning (EEEL) building uses 78 percent less energy than a conventional laboratory building. It features vertical green sunshades that move throughout the day to reduce glare and solar heat gain, concrete “Earth Tubes” that run air underground to the main lecture theatre to regulate temperature, and captured rain water mixed with recycled process water for graywater use.

The Commons Center is the thirteenth certified project on campus and features locally sourced and manufactured building materials and low-flow plumbing fixtures. Additionally, an innovative green housekeeping was implemented and low-vapor emitting materials were used during construction.

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The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education is a membership association of colleges & universities, businesses, and nonprofits who are working together to lead the sustainability transformation. Learn more about AASHE's mission.